Thirty-one

I finished writing my thirty-first short story today, a 4,300-word confession that I started writing in April 2008. This one deals with breast cancer.

40

I received my 40th acceptance of the year this morning, this time for...um...er...I don't know what it is but the anthology I sold it to has the working title The Big Book of Bizarro if that helps classify the story.

This is one of the rare stories I've written the past several years where I had no clue what my potential market would be but I wrote anyhow because I thought the idea was too cool to let sit in my ideas folder. The payoff came when I saw this anthology's call for submissions and had this story already finished and ready to submit.

Stud now available for Kindle

Stud by Rolinda Hay is now available for Kindle.

Christiana Kern is already overworked as the top customer service representative at Wett, Inc., the country’s largest printer of special interest magazines, when her boss assigns her a new title. She isn’t eager to accept the additional responsibility...until she meets Bobby Ray Cartwright, the sexy rancher publishing the start-up magazine. It isn’t long before business and pleasure mix and Christiana learns that STUD isn’t just the title of Bobby Ray’s new publication. Soon Christiana is having the best sex ever and is facing life-altering decisions in and out of the bedroom.

Order your copy here.

37, 38, 39

I received three acceptances in today's mail, my 37th, 38th, and 39th acceptances of the year. All were for confessions.

Published

My hardboiled erotic crime story "Payback" appears in the August Hustler Fantasies. I like the tag line the editor gave it: "This story has everything: Sex, guns, money, the mob, more sex..."

36

I received my 36th acceptance of the year earlier today, this time for a confession submitted earlier this month.

ApolloCon

I'll be on five panels at ApolloCon in Houston this weekend. If any of y'all write science fiction/fantasy/horror and happen to be there, say howdy.

Thirty

I wrote and submitted my thirtieth short story of the year this evening. This time it's a 2,000-word bit of erotic crime fiction.

I had three anthology calls for submissions with deadlines of June 30 or July 1 and, after completing my previous story, I reread the guidelines for these three anthologies.

This afternoon I had an idea for an opening paragraph that could have led to a story for either of two of the anthologies. As I added a few more sentences, I realized it fit one anthology better than the other and then went full bore into writing the story.

According to the time stamp on my Word file, I started writing this at 5:54 p.m. and finished at 11:04 p.m., or about five hours from first word to last. That's a pathetic 400 words-per-hour, but if they're the right words and the editor buys the story I won't complain too much.

And, besides, I did other things, too, such as walking the dogs several times.

Twenty-nine

I just finished and submitted my twenty-ninth short story of the year. This one's a 1,400-word story involving magic.

I've had an anthology's open call for submissions in my binder for several months but had not had any appropriate story ideas for it. (I put anthology guidelines in my binder by deadline date, writing and submitting stories in deadline order or discarding guidelines if I don't make the deadlines.)

This anthology's guidelines reached the front of the binder earlier this week and I read them repeatedly, trying to force myself to have an idea. Nothing happened. Until yesterday.

Last evening, on my way home from spending Father's Day with Plot Monkey, the story title, story structure, and primary characters came to me. I couldn't get home fast enough, and I immediately keyed everything into a Word file.

But making notes isn't writing and the words didn't come right then.

I woke up this morning and the first two pages flowed out. Around mid-morning, after an interruption to work on other tasks, the next two pages flowed out. This evening, though the words didn't flow as easily as earlier in the day, I wrote the rest of the story, proofread it, and sent it off.

Published

My erotic caper "Seven-Inch Stretch" appears in In Plain View (Bold Strokes Books), an anthology scheduled for release in August.

Dash

There's a discussion thread on the Kindleboards about the use of hyphens, en-dashes, and em-dashes, and several of the people who posted clearly do not understand punctuation and typography. Here's what I posted (or attempted to post; it hasn't shown up yet):

The comments in this thread are indicative of why self-publishing gets a bad rap.

Failing to properly use the tools of the trade (in this case hyphens, en-dashes, and em-dashes) announces to a knowledgeable reader that the author/publisher lacks the ability to do a professional job.

It's like calling a plumber to unstop your toilet. Instead of bringing a plunger and a pipe wrench, he shows up with a table saw and a tire swing. He might still get the job done, but you'll know he's not a professional.

Although there are several style books available, the two most commonly used are The Chicago Manual of Style (primarily used by book publishers) and The Associated Press Stylebook (primarily used by newspaper and magazine publishers). Buy them. Read them. Keep them next to your computer and reference them often.

The 15th edition of The Chicago Manual of Style, which I believe is the most current edition, spends five pages explaining the difference between the hyphen, the en-dash, and the em-dash. The Associated Press Stylebook offers a much shorter explanation of the use of the dash, but the two agree about what constitutes proper usage.

Their key point of disagreement? The Associate Press Stylebook advocates the use of a space on each side of the em-dash when used within text and The Chicago Manual of Style advocates against the use of a space on each side of the em-dash when used within text. And if you know anything about typography, you'll understand why they differ on this point.

Published

My story "In the Swim of Things" appears in the July True Story.

Twenty-eight

I finished and submitted my twenty-eighth short story of the year a few minutes ago. This one's a 1,600-word bit of erotica that I started June 9, 2010.

I only had the title and the opening paragraph when I received an email last week from an anthology editor seeking additional submissions for a project already weeks past the submission deadline. I nosed around my files, found this, realized the basic concept fit within the anthology's guidelines, and wrote the story a little at a time while wrapping up some other projects.

It's up to the editor now.

35

I received my 35th acceptance of the year this evening, this time for a 2,100-word bit of crime fiction I wrote last year.

Twenty-seven

I finished writing my twenty-seventh short story of the year, a 6,100-word confession that I started writing April 29, 2010. I'm printing the final draft now and it'll go in tomorrow's mail.

Published

My erotic ghost story "House of Seven Inches" appears in the just-published anthology The Call of the Night, edited by Miranda Forbes and published Xcite.

Twenty-six

I finished writing my 26th short story of the year this evening. It's a 3,000-word confession with a back-to-school theme that I started April 29, 2010, and it'll go in the mail tomorrow.

Spicy Confessions 3 now available for Kindle

Confessions are a unique form of women's fiction. They aren't romances, though they are often romantic. They aren't erotica, though some are quite sensual. And they aren't chick lit, though they are clearly written for and about contemporary women. What they are, are compelling stories about real women facing real problems.

The five short stories in Spicy Confessions 3--"And Miles to Do Before I Sleep," "Caribbean Surprise," "My Husband is a Big Boob," "I Slept With My Sister's Husband" and "Christmas Guest"--showcase Rolinda Hay at her spicy best, featuring five women dealing with what men see first, a sexy vacation getaway, body image, a cheating sister, and an unexpected Christmas surprise.

Order your copy here.

Kindle corrections / Smashwords

Last week I discovered a formatting error common to all of the titles I released in Kindle format. Over the weekend I corrected every title but one--Microchick, which Amazon won't let me update--and the corrected versions should now be or should soon be available.

If you purchased one of my self-published Kindle titles, please update your file so that you can read the corrected version.

Also, yesterday I uploaded Unbridled Love: A Romance with Horse Sense, which continues to be my best-selling self-published title, to Smashwords. It is now available in multiple formats through Smashwords and should soon be available for purchase from all the sites that Smashwords serves.

34

I received my 34th acceptance of the year this afternoon, this for a confession submitted in January.

Published every month for eight years

With publication of "Sparks Fly on Independence Day" in the July 2011 True Confessions, I have now had one (or more!) short stories published each month for 96 consecutive months.

Spicy Confessions 2 now available for Kindle

Confessions are a unique form of women's fiction. They aren't romances, though they are often romantic. They aren't erotica, though some are quite sensual. And they aren't chick lit, though they are clearly written for and about contemporary women. What they are, are compelling stories about real women facing real problems.

The four short stories in Spicy Confessions 2--"An Engaging New Year," "My Lover's Secret," "I Was a Topless Waitress" and "The Secret Lives of Teachers"--showcase Rolinda Hay at her spicy best, featuring four women dealing with a stranger's kiss at midnight on New Year's Eve, a new lover's sexual secret, job loss during a recession, and the sexual escapades of small-town teachers during Spring Break.

Order your copy here.

And be on the lookout for two more Rolinda Hay titles coming soon.

My path to publication

As part of the promotional efforts for Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction, the editors are posting a series of brief essays titled "Paths to Publication," written by the book's contributors.

Here's mine.

More Kindle reality

A few days ago I posted my Kindle sales numbers, sharing my experience near the bottom of the market because I hadn't seen anyone else do that.

Today I discovered a topic thread on the Kindleboards where other electronic self-publishers share their sales figures, and the figures--the good, the bad, and the ugly--are enlightening.

Read the thread here.

33

Apparently, the band's still playing on the Titanic. Earlier today I received an acceptance from one of the two remaining confession magazines, this time for a rare male-narrated confession I submitted in February.

This is my 33rd acceptance of the year.

Last writer on the Titanic

I have been writing confessions almost as long as I've been writing. My first sale to a confession magazine was a poem published in February 1981, the same year I sold my first confession. I have written so many confessions that other confession writers dubbed me the "King of Confessions."

That's why I was dishearted to learn earlier today that two more confession magazines--True Love and True Romance--have ceased publication.

Only two confession magazines remain: True Confessions and True Story.

While I may continue to write for and submit to the two remaining publications, it's time to take a hard look at my fiction production. I need to spend more of my writing energy producing work in other genres.

But first I need to determine which genres offer the greatest opportunities.

By coincidence, I've been working on a series of Rolinda Hay projects, including Spicy Confessions 2 (scheduled for release within 48 hours) and Spicy Confessions 3 (which I hope to release shortly after that). Because I may have a dozen or so publishable but unsold confessions landing back in my lap now that the genre has hit an iceberg, I may be stretching the series into volumes 4, 5, 6, and beyond.

Jim Winter on his Kindle experience

Earlier today Jim Winter blogged about his experience posting a single story on Kindle, and he makes some interesting observations. Check it out here.

Memories Dying now available for Kindle

Memories Dying, a horror novella I wrote several years ago is now available for Kindle.

Young police officer Mike Morelli expected a routine night shift in the northern California coastal town where he had lived his entire life. Then Patrick Bates, chairman of the Baker High School class of 1974 reunion committee, returned to town. Would his classmates, most of whom died graduation night, soon follow?

Memories Dying was previously published in the U.K. as In the Town of Dreams Unborn and Memories Dying and received some great reviews, including the following:

"A truly terrifying tale in the Stephen King tradition. Michael Bracken is a horror writer to watch out for."-Writers Block

"Nicely understated and atmospheric...."-Science Fiction Chronicle

Order it here.

Reviewed

My erotic noir story "Garden Variety" appears in two anthologies, When a Man Loves A Man and All the Boys. Coffee Time Romance and More reviewed All the Boys and had this to say about my story:

Mr. Bracken knows how to write a tantalizing tale of a forbidden affair between two men. [...] The way the traditional “pool boy” story is twisted to fit the GLBT genre was also brilliantly done. What a red-hot read this turned out to be.

Read the full review and learn what the reviewer thought of the other stories here.

Kindle reality

The Kindle millionaires are quite willing to tout their sales numbers and earnings, but no one else seems willing to share their data. So, how about a little dose of reality from the bottom end?

But first, some background:

I'm an established writer with nearly 900 short story sales.

My stories have been spread across so many genres that I'm not particularly well known in any specific genre.

I have many titles available from many sources in many formats (Kindle, Nook, etc.) but I'm only sharing numbers from my self-published work, and my self-published work is currently available only from Amazon for Kindle.

I uploaded my first title in April 2010, an original sweet romance titled Unbridled Love: A Romance With Horse Sense. As of the end of April 2011, I had sold 38 copies. Mid-April I changed the cover and this month to date I've sold 17 copies.

In August and September 2010 I uploaded three hardboiled crime short stories ("Glass Houses," "Lesser of Two Evils," and "Pick,") and one mystery novella "Dreams Unborn," all previously published. They are offered individually. As of the end of April 2011, I've sold--all four titles combined--23 copies. This month to date: 0.

In April 2010 I uploaded Microchick, a collection of 24 previously published erotic SF, horror, and fantasy short stories. During April I sold 1 copy. This month to date: 3.

In April 2010 I uploaded Sex, Violence, & Half a Million Dollars, a collection of 23 previously published erotic hardboiled and noir crime fiction stories. In April I sold 8 copies. This month to date: 1.

Earlier this month I uploaded Spicy Confessions, a collection of four confession stories as by Rolinda Hay. Sales this month to date: 1.

I've done little promotion--links on my website, links on my blog, occasional mentions on Facebook, and this post, which might serve some promotional purpose.

Most of what I've made available for the Kindle is previously published work, so any income the stories generate is gravy, but the amount of money I'm earning in any particular month is negligible. (I'll clear $40 for May sales, my best month to date.)

I hope having real sales numbers, with real titles you can study (look at the covers, look at the product descriptions, look at the tags, look at the reviews [or lack of reviews]) will help you decide if self-publishing is worth your effort.

For me? Yes, but...

Popular in Japan?

I've recently noticed a series of tweets referencing my books and providing links to them on Amazon.co.jp. I can't read Japanese, so I have no idea what the tweets say. Even so, how cool is it that someone on the other side of the world has taken the time to tweet about my work?

My afternoon as a butt model

Magazine editors do much more than wrestle nouns and verbs. Sometimes we're called upon to utilize our physical assets rather than our mental assets.

Yesterday, after editing a humorous article about Dumpster diving for gardeners that arrived without illustrations or photography, I was selected to Dumpster dive while the magazine's publisher took photographs to accompany the article.

So, there I was around mid-day, head down in a Dumpster, my backside pointed skyward and my legs a kickin', hoping I wouldn't fall in before the editor could get a usable shot.

He took the shot, I didn't fall in, and the selected photo will appear in the July/August issue of Texas Gardener.

And, let me tell you, being a model isn't all its cracked up to be.

Twenty-five

I finished writing my twenty-fifth short story of the year this morning, a 5,400-word confession that I started writing on March 1. This one's a bit of a romance without a specific holiday or seasonal theme, and it will go in the mail within the hour.

32

Never throw any writing away, especially not homework. As friends and long-time readers know, I returned to college as an adult and finally graduated with a B.A. in Professional writing in 2005. I was 48.

Because I'm a writer, I kept every essay and term paper. A couple of the things I wrote for my various classes have since been published, and it's about to happen again.

An argumentative essay I wrote in the form of a letter back in March 2004 just found a home in an anthology of unsent letters, making it my 32nd acceptance of the year.

Twenty-four

I finished and submitted my twenty-fourth story of the year this morning, a 3,200-word crime story written for an anthology to which I was invited to submit. I hope it meets the editor's needs, but if not, there's still time before the deadline to write a different story, and I don't think I'll have any problem finding a different home for this one.

Show me the money

Several short story writers I know have made their short stories available for Kindle and other electronic devices as individual stories, small collections of only a few stories, and larger collections with a dozen or more stories. So, how are we doing?

The writers who seem to doing well with electronic self-publishing all seem to be novelists, or are primarily novelists. Is there any writer earning a significant amount of money electronically self-publishing short stories in any genre?

I've been making work available for Kindle for about 13 months now, dribbling
things out a little at a time. Although a couple of my novels are available for
Kindle and etc., my publishers released them; my electronically self-published
releases have ranged from short stories to novelettes to novellas.

By the end of last year I was earning $10-$20/month--nice pocket change for minimal effort--but not significant. Last month's earnings--after changing one cover and adding a couple of titles--doubled, and I'm on-track this month to again earn $30-$40. Better. Still not significant.

So, are any short story writers who are not primarily known as novelists doing well with electronically self-publishing short stories?

And, if so, in what genre(s) are they writing?

(For comparison: My best-selling title, representing more than half my total sales, is a sweet romance titled Unbridled Love: A Romance with Horse Sense.)

Published

My erotic short story "Secrets" appears in the anthology Best of Both (Xcite, edited by Miranda Forbes). Although the anthology was released several weeks ago, my contributor copy just arrived from London.

Blog update

I've rearranged a few elements on my blog layout and added links to all of the projects I've made available for Kindle. When I next have time to fuss with my blog, I hope to add links to the hardbacks, paperbacks, and Kindle editions of projects released by my various publishers.

Quoted

Gothic.net asked several dozen horror writers "What was the first movie or book or television show that scared you?" My response is near the tail-end of the page.

Time and place

I've been invited to contribute to an anthology that requires all stories take place within a tightly constrained geographical location, though the stories can be set in the past or the present.

Though I visited this location a few times in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the story I'm writing takes place even earlier. And my protagonist has an occupation with which I have minimal knowledge.

So, I'm having to research both time and place. What did this location look like at that point in time? What was happening in the world that impacted that location? How did my protagonist's occupation fit the time and place? And so on.

I don't write much fiction that requires extensive research because it often isn't cost-effective, and I always find myself traveling down research dead-ends or spending time reading about cool stuff that has nothing to do with the story-in-progress. (Though, I must admit, my ghost story "Pushing Coal" in Specters in Coal Dust, for which I had to research coal mining in the 1950s, turned out pretty good.) This time is no different.

But I'm glad I'm doing it because this is a story I never would have written without the invitation, and I have high hopes for the final draft.

Branded

Once upon a time I could write for several different publications without changing my byline. I could have a child-friendly story in a children's magazine and a violent or sexually explicit story in an adult publication the same month and not worry that the readership would overlap.

My how things have changed. Thanks to the Internet and all the search engines and social networking sites, readers can now discover the range of my work.

Unfortunately, a reader who enjoys my YA romance Just in Time for Love or my sweet romance Unbridled Love: A Romance With Horse Sense isn't likely to enjoy my hardboiled private eye novel All White Girls and is even less likely to enjoy the sexually explicit crime fiction in Sex, Violence & Half a Million Dollars.

In a world where branding is important, I've become over-branded, much like the tattooed lady at the carnival who becomes so covered with ink that no particular image stands out.

And, sadly, having "writer" as a brand just isn't specific enough.

Lady Leo defunct

Lady Leo Publishing, publisher of black romances and black confessions after Black Confessions, Jive, etc. ceased publication, has closed shop. The website is gone, most of Lady Leo's titles have disappeared from Amazon and B&N (except those titles written by the publisher), and the Facebook group is filled with authors asking each other if they've heard anything from the publisher. A couple of Lady Leo's other writers have shared word that the publisher reverted all rights to contributors.

This was a nice small press, but it reminds us of the danger of writing for small presses. One-person operations can disappear quickly, for any number of reasons, and when the publisher closes email accounts, shuts down websites, and generally stops communicating, our work may be trapped in limbo.

This problem isn't limited to small publishers, though. Even large publishers can sink, taking our work with them. The difference is that large publishers usually sink more slowly and leave a trail of information behind.

Published in Writing Book

I am one of several contributors to Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction, edited by Michael A. Arnzen and Heidi Ruby Miller and just released by Headline Books.

Order your copy here.

Published

My erotic romance story "Creosote Flats and the Big Spread" appears in The Handsome Prince, edited by Neil Plakcy and recently released by Cleis Press.

31

I returned home from the annual Oklahoma Writers' Federation Inc. conference to find my 31st acceptance waiting in the mail box, this time for a 2,900-word bit of erotic crime fiction.

Published 2x

My stories "Daddy Dearest" and "Someday He'll Notice Me" appear in the June True Story.

30

I received my 30th acceptance of the year in today's mail, this time for a 4,600-word confession I submitted in February.

Spicy Confessions coming soon to Kindle

Confessions are a unique form of women's fiction. They aren't romances, though they are often romantic. They aren't erotica, though some are quite sensual. And they aren't chick lit, though they are clearly written for and about contemporary women. What they are, are compelling stories about real women facing real problems.

Rolinda Hay, under her own name and several pseudonyms, has been a leading confession writer for several decades, with more than two hundred confessions published in Black Confessions, Black Romance, Intimate Romances, Intimate Secrets, Intimate Story, Jive, Modern Romances, Secrets, True Confessions, True Experience, True Love, True Romance, True Secrets, and True Story.

The four short stories in Spicy Confessions--“Stolen Rose on Valentine’s Day,” “I Caught My Parents Doing It,” “Is That A Banana In Your Pants?” and “We Fought for Our Love Life”--showcase Hay at her spicy best, featuring four women dealing with love, sex, aging parents having sex, and a bus stop pervert.

5/3/11 UPDATE: Find Spicy Confessions here.

Published 5x

My stories "Picture This" and "A Forgettable Night" appear in the May True Romance and my stories "The Chocolate Lady," "Mother's Day Gift," and "Skateboard Love" appear in the May True Love.

Twenty-three

I finished and submitted my twenty-third short story of the year, a 2,000-word bit of erotica that I started Wednesday. This one's for an anthology with an open call for submissions.

29

I received my 29th acceptance of the year this afternoon, this time for a 1,600-word bit of crime fiction submitted March 3.

28

I received my 28th acceptance of the year this afternoon, this time for a 2,600-word confession that mostly takes place on Independence Day.

#1 Bestselling horse romance

I don't understand how titles get ranked at Amazon, though I'm certainly trying to figure it out.

Search for "horse romance" in Amazon's Kindle store and my Unbridled Love: A Romance With Horse Sense is #1, but search for "romance horse" and it falls to #6.

Search for "hardboiled" and you'll find four of my titles in the top 101: three short stories--"Glass Houses" at #35, "Pick" at #94, and "Lesser of Two Evils" at #101--and one collection--Sex, Lies & Half A Million Dollars at #40. But search for "hard-boiled" and none of my titles break the top 150, which is where I stopped searching.

4/26/11 UPDATE: I've confused "bestselling" with "relevance." Unbridled Love isn't the #1 bestselling "horse romance." It is, instead, the #1 title relevant to a search for the words "horse romance."

Sigh.

So much to learn. And too eager to share what I thought was good news.

Reality bites

Almost two weeks ago my truck was totaled in a traffic accident. I stopped at a red light with one car in front of me. Two cars collided in the intersection and one of the them spun around the car in front of me and hit my truck. Of the three vehicles involved, mine was the only one towed from the scene. (I'm fine.)

I had only one payment remaining on the truck and was looking forward to the decrease in monthly expenses and the potential increase in savings.

So, I've spent much of the past 10 days dealing with the aftermath of the accident--dealing with insurance companies and shopping for a new vehicle being the most time-consuming. I had several editing and non-fiction projects in progress at the time of the accident and I kept all but one of them on-schedule throughout the past ten days. The other isn't due for two weeks and I expect to deliver it on time by giving it some concentrated attention in the coming weeks.

The impact of all this reality is that I've not written much fiction. It is difficult to be creative when reality bites you in the butt.

I learned years ago to deal with reality first and then return to writing. Sometimes I am refreshed by the break and sometimes I'm so glad to have whatever happened behind me that writing feels like a godsend.

So, it's time to look through my editorial calendar and the anthology calls that drifted in when I wasn't paying attention and start churning out the words again.

Reviewed

I contributed two stories to the erotic anthology When A Man Loves A Man, a private eye story and a noirish story. Mandi reviewed the anthology at Goodreads and had this to say about my contributions:

"My favorite stories were 'Stand By Your Man' and 'Garden Variety' by Michael Bracken. No happy end in sight on those, but I really enjoyed the writing."

Microchick coming soon to Kindle

Microchick’s 24 erotic science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories are throwbacks to the paranormal fiction published in men's magazines during the late 20th Century, and feature demons, ghosts, mermaids, and hot, out-of-this-world sex.

I uploaded the collection this morning and it should be available for purchase within a day.

4/17/11 Update: Find it here.

Sex, Violence & Half A Million Dollars now available for Kindle

Hard men and busty babes dominate the 23 erotic crime fiction stories included in Sex, Violence & Half A Million Dollars. These stories, throwbacks to the hardboiled and noir mystery fiction published in men's magazines during the late 20th Century, feature clever crimes and smokin' hot sex.

Order your copy here.

New cover for Unbridled Love

Last year I uploaded Unbridled Love: A Romance With Horse Sense to Amazon for Kindle distribution. It had a truly awful cover--yellow type on a red background and no photo or graphic image--but has been selling a few copies each month despite the bad cover. Today I finally improved the cover and I'm hoping the new cover will attract more readers.

Unbridled Love is a romance novella that attracted the attention of some magazine editors, but was deemed too long for publication. As a novella, it's too short to publish as a traditional book.

Rather than bore you with my Kindle sales experience, how about I tell you about the book:

Melissa Grant, the 25-year-old owner of a tack shop, is disgusted with the way the new riding instructor at Rocking Horse Stables treats her classmates during their first lesson, and her attempt to confront him is thwarted when she bursts into his apartment over the observation room and finds him half-undressed.

Will an escalating series of attractions and repulsions set against the backdrop of the riding stable where Hans Edelmann teaches and the narrator has her shop--including their preparations for the annual competition at Stallion Stables, the pending sale of Rocking Horse Stables, and the narrator’s mistaken belief that Edelmann is interested in an older woman--lead to true love?

If you enjoy sweet romances or you enjoy stories with horses, you'll enjoy Unbridled Love: A Romance With Horse Sense.

27

I received my 27th acceptance of the year shortly before midnight, this time for a 2,100-word hardboiled/noir crime story submitted April 6.

Why the world confuses me

I am not good at idle chit-chat, perhaps because I over-think the questions I'm asked and find myself stumped as to how to respond.

Three examples:

1. There's a common question asked to determine if the responder is an optimist or a pessimist: "Do you see the glass as half full or half empty?"

I see the question as fundamentally flawed. The glass is always 100% full. It is partially filled with a liquid and partially filled with a gas.

My response makes me neither optimist nor pessimist but an irritating nit-picker.

2. I took a multiple-choice test once that asked "Which of these three do not belong: the sun, the moon, and a candle?"

Everyone I've spoken to insists the candle does not belong. I say because the question is multiple choice, it lacks sufficient information to determine the proper response.

I can make a reasonable argument to exclude any one of the three choices.

For example:

The sun and the moon are heavenly bodies. A candle is not. Therefore, the candle does not belong.

The sun and a candle give off heat and light. The moon only reflects light. Therefore, the moon does not belong.

The moon and a candle have been touched by man. The sun has not been touched by man. Therefore, the sun does not belong.

Because the test was multiple choice, there was no opportunity to justify whichever choice I selected and no way to determine the answer the test creator intended.

3. In a college-level grammar class the instructor wrote "He ate Wednesday" on the blackboard and insisted there was only one correct way to read this sentence:

He (a man) ate (consumed a meal of some sort) Wednesday (on a specific day of the week).

I say that without context there is no way to know exactly what that sentence means.

For example:

"He" may or may not refer to a human male and, in addition to being the name of a day of the week, "Wednesday" is also a woman's name.

Therefore, in a story about cannibalism, "He ate Wednesday" could describe the consumption of a woman.

In an erotic story, "He ate Wednesday" could refer to a sexual act.

In a fantasy, "He ate Wednesday" could refer to a mythical being that actually consumes time.*

Therefore, I say the meaning of the sentence is determined by context, not by the sentence itself standing alone.

Alas, because I over-think these questions/situations, and because these questions/situations occur on a daily basis, I regularly find myself stumped by things that the person I'm with sees as black-and-white/yes-or-no questions/situations and I see as lacking sufficient information to answer or as having so many shades of gray that the response requires an essay and not a multiple choice selection from an overly simplistic list of options.

Sigh.

____

*Note: I'm actually trying to write this story.

Reviewed

"News Flash," a short story featuring P.I Morris Ronald Boyette and published by Untreed Reads, received 4.5 stars at Night Owl Reviews. Read the entire review here.

The cover of Munchies

The cover of Jack Bludis's latest book Munchies and Other Tales of Guys, Gals & Guns, a collection of 13 short stories, seems to have multiple versions. This is the version I like best, perhaps because my name's on it, too.

What I said, in case it's too small to read, is:

"Jack Bludis is one smokin' hot crime fiction writer. When you finish reading this collection, you'll be hungry for more."

I'm proud to say that two of the stories in Jack's collection--"Munchies" and "Truth or Lie"--were first published in anthologies I edited.

And if you've ever read "Munchies," you'll appreciate my blurb even more.

Order a Kindle edition here.

Published

"Secrets," an erotic short story, appears in Best of Both, edited by Miranda Forbes and just published by Xcite.

Published 2x

"Opening My Heart to Love" appears in the May True Story and "Memories to Last a Lifetime" appears in the May True Confessions.

26

I received my 26th acceptance of the year in today's mail, for a Father's Day-themed confession I submitted February 13.

Twenty-two

I finished and submitted my twenty-second story of the year this evening. This one's a 2,600-word confession set on Independence Day. I started writing it on March 10, completed only the first few hundred words, and picked it up again yesterday afternoon.

After a little on-line research to ensure that two plot points were factually correct and not created whole cloth from some fever dream, I finished writing the story yesterday. Today I had to revise/cut the last few pages because I'd written way past the actual end of the story. And then it was on its way to an editor.

Twenty-one

I finished and submitted my twenty-first short story of the year. This one's a 3,900-word confession I started writing March 25, 2010. I had written less than two pages back then and the story sat until I was looking for a summer-based story. I picked it up again a few days ago, worked out a plot twist that hadn't been evident in my original rough pages, and finished writing it today.

Twenty

I finished and submitted my twentieth short story of the year this evening. This one, a 2,800-word ghost story, much like the two previous stories, owes its existence to Left Coast Crime.

During the drive to LCC I told Rebecca about two anthologies with open calls. Plot Monkey went into action and together we created detailed outlines for two stories, one for each anthology.

One written, one to write.

25, published

My 25th acceptance of the year is an erotica reprint. Originally scheduled for a paperback anthology, the story's also being included in an e-anthology. The story, "Secrets," appears in A Fantasy Threesome, edited by Miranda Forbes and released by Xcite.

Nineteen

I finished and submitted my nineteenth story of the year this morning, a 4,300-word confession. This story also owes its existence, in part, to Left Coast Crime.

Rebecca and I stopped in Amarillo on our way to Santa Fe and had dinner in a Mexican restaurant. I wondered aloud, "What about a confession where the narrator is a waitress in a Mexican restaurant?"

That isn't a story. That's barely even a complete thought.

While we were kicking around ways that the narrator might meet a customer, we noticed that the restaurant had a small, glass-topped freezer and every so often a little kid would reach into it and pull out a single-serving ice cream cup.

That's when we knew the narrator's love interest would have a child. Many children. Then her love interest morphed into a T-ball coach who accidently leaves one of his young players behind in the restaurant.

We had the set-up.

I wrote the first 2,000 words in various hotel rooms in Texas and Santa Fe, but put it aside to write story eighteen when I returned home. On Wednesday, while sitting through a power failure at one of my clients' offices, I plotted the last half of the story on a scrap of paper. Yesterday I returned to the manuscript and, between other chores and deadlines, wrote the last 2,300-words.

Blog upgrade

I've upgraded my blog to layouts. I haven't customized anything yet, but boy oh boy does it look different. This will take some getting used to.

Video killed the ebookstar

I'm in a Parnell Hall video...barely. Parnell shot "Support Your Local Bookstore" at Left Coast Crime 2011 and I'm wearing a red shirt on the far left side of the screen in a group shot at the :22 mark.

Watch the video here.

I guess my dreams of becoming a video star are finally coming true...

24

Yesterday's submission is today's acceptance. The header on the email announcing the acceptance: "Love the story!"

Why can't all editors accept stories this effusively?

Published 3x

My stories "Parent-Teacher Relations," "The Littlest Matchmaker," and "A Family Affair at Easter" appear in the April True Love.

Eighteen

I finished and submitted my eighteenth story of the year earlier this evening, a 3,300-word erotic love story.

This story owes its existence to my attending Left Coast Crime. While there, I met and talked with an editor to whom I've previous sold work. He mentioned an anthology he had put together and that he was a few stories short of the word count his publisher wanted. I had not submitted to the anthology because I hadn't come up with a good idea in time to meet the original submission deadline.

I asked what he needed and might I have a shot at providing a story at this late date.

Upon his return home Monday, he sent me an email outlining the kinds of stories he didn't have and wanted to see.

That night, after I returned home, I wrote the opening couple of pages and a rough outline of a story. I emailed it to him and learned within the hour that he thought the idea was "terrific."

Although I was swamped with other deadlines (I edit a weekly newsletter, a monthly newsletter, a monthly newspaper, and a bi-monthly magazine--all of them with deadlines at the end of one month or beginning of the next), I wrote the story.

And now the manuscript's in the editor's hands. Let's hope the execution is as "terrific" as the concept...

23...probably

I learned of my 23rd acceptance of the year earlier today, but not from the editor who apparently accepted the story.

Last year I sold a story to an anthology and later heard from the editor that he needed more stories. I sent him two more and heard nothing.

Until yesterday.

A fellow writer who has a story in the same anthology mentioned that he'd received page proofs from the editor, and he congratulated me for having two stories in it.

Two? Which two?

He told me: The story for which I'd signed a contract and one of the other two stories I'd submitted.

I've tried to confirm this with the anthology editor--an editor to whom I've sold several stories in recent years--but I've heard nothing.*

No contract for the second story. No page proofs to check.

Sigh.

I have no reason to doubt the writer who told me about this so I'm counting this as my 23rd sale of the year.

Still, I'd like to receive confirmation from the editor.
____
*Less than 12 hours have passed since I emailed the editor, so it's a bit soon to actually fret about this

3/31/11 ADDENDUM: Sale confirmed overnight by the editor. Life is good.

Left Coast Crime 2011 addendum

Beth Groundwater posted a report and numerous photos from Left Coast Crime on her blog, including another photo of the short story panel. See everything here.

Left Coast Crime 2011

These might be the only photos you see of the "Short But Not Sweet: Short Stories" panel at Left Coast Crime 2011 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, because Rebecca (aka Plot Monkey) appeared to be the only person in the room with a camera.

From left to right: Moderator Jane Burfield, Stephen D. Rogers, Lance Zarimba, Patricia Morin, and Michael Bracken.

Published 2x

My sexually violent vampire story "Les Sperme Vampire" appears in D.O.A.: Extreme Horror Collection, edited by David C. Hayes and Jack Burton and just released by Blood Bound Books.

My erotic crime story "Making Room at the Top" appears in Homo Thugs, edited by Shane Allison and published by StarBooks Press. This was released a few months ago but I just received my copy.

22

I received my 22nd acceptance of the year today, this time for a 3,600-word confession submitted March 6.

21

I returned home from Left Coast Crime to find my 21st acceptance waiting in the mailbox, this time for a 4,500-word confession I submitted on March 15.

Reviewed

In a post at the Short Mystery Fiction Society's group, Victor J. Banis discussed three mystery short stories recently released by Untreed Reads. About "News Flash," he said:

"Michael Bracken's 'News Flash' was a noir delight, perfectly paced."

Get your own copy of "News Flash" from the publisher here or from Amazon here.

Sharing the creative spark

I'm one of eight Wacoans from multiple creative fields profiled in Carl Hoover's "Waco artists share how they find the creative spark for their work" (Waco Tribune-Herald, March 17, 2011).

The article's available here, but the newspaper requires you to log in.

Published

My short romance, "Second Chance," was published today by The Long and Short of It. Read it here.

Seventeen

I finished and am about to submit my seventeenth short story of the year this evening. This one's a 4,500-word confession I started writing October 12, 2007. I had completed 2,800 words of the story and, once I read what I had already written, I pretty much know how the story should end. So I finished it.

Interviewed

I was interviewed today for an article on creativity. The interview was brief, but I think that's mostly because several creative people (and not just writers) were to be interviewed for the article and I doubt any one of us will get more than a paragraph or two in the final piece.

But we'll see.

20

I received my 20th acceptance today, this time for a hardboiled crime story I wrote back in December 2008.

I submitted this ms. in January 2009 to an editor who has purchased many of my stories over the years. When I had not received a response by February of this year--several months beyond the longest length of time she's ever held a ms. without a response--I resubmitted it with a polite note that I was worried the ms. had been lost in the mail. Result: sale!

Sixteen

I completed and submitted my sixteenth short story of the year earlier today. This one's a 4,300-word confession I started writing March 3, 2008. I had completed the first 1,500 or so words at some point and picked it up again a few days ago.

19

I received my 19th acceptance of the year in today's mail, this time for a 4,600-word confession submitted January 17.

Published

My story "New Bonnets, New Love" appears in the just-published April True Story.

Published

"News Flash," a short story featuring P.I. Morris Ronald Boyette, has just be released in various electronic formats by Untreed Reads. Read an excerpt and order your copy here.

Fifteen

I finished and submitted my fifteenth short story of the year a few minutes ago. This one's a 4,900-word confession I started writing March 4, 2008. I had completed almost 2,000 words before I picked it up again.

18

I received my 18th acceptance of the year in today's mail. This one's for a Mother's Day confession I submitted on January 26.

Published

"Tagged on Easter" appears in the April True Romance.

Fourteen

I completed and submitted my fourteenth story of the year this evening. This one's a 3,600-word confession I started writing March 29, 2010. Back then I wrote about 700 words and made a few rough plot notes. I picked the story up again after finishing yesterday's story and wrote the balance of this one in spurts because I was working around other activities--a birthday party, a movie, etc.

17

The story I finished writing this afternoon was accepted this evening, making it my 17th acceptance of the year.

Thirteen

I finished writing my thirteenth short story of the year, a 2,700-word bit of erotic crime fiction set in the early 1930s. I started writing this story on March 2 and struggled to get the slang right.

The anthology editor this is intended for likes to see queries rather than full ms., so I e-mailed the query a few minutes ago.

14, 15, 16

I received three acceptances via e-mail this afternoon, my 14th, 15th, and 16th acceptances of the year. All three acceptances were for confessions.

The oldest story was written in early 2009 and found a home on its third submission. The other two--written in December 2010 and February 2011--found a home their first time out.

13

I received my 13th acceptance of the year this afternoon, for a Mother's Day confession I submitted December 21, 2010.

12

I received my 12th acceptance of the year this morning, for a short romance submitted August 1, 2010.